The Tories will be relieved to have not suffered major losses. Reeling from the Windrush scandal, divided over Brexit and after eight years of austerity they have nevertheless, so far, taken almost exactly the same number of seats as in 2014.

There is no certainty that Labour will win the next general election. Simply waiting for the Tories to collapse is not a winning option

Labour mayor Sadiq Khan said the party was heading for the best result since 1971 when it won 53 percent of the vote in the capital. However, that won’t be known for some time as several boroughs have yet to declare.

If the present results were repeated at a general election then probably no party could form a government. However we should remember that the turnout at local elections is much lower than at a general election.

In excellent news, Ukip has been almost wiped from the electoral map. It has lost 106 of the seats it was defending and won just two (in Derby).

"It's not all over at all," Mr Oakley told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"Think of the Black Death in the Middle Ages. It comes along and it causes disruption and then it goes dormant, and that's exactly what we are going to do.”

The Lib Dems were celebrating their gains of around 40 seats. But in 2014 they lost 310, so last night’s results go no way towards repairing their fall.

The results underline that there is no certainty that Labour will win the next general election. Simply waiting for the Tories to collapse is not a winning option.

And drawing back from struggle and radicalism risks allowing the Tories to cling on.

The battles against austerity and racism in the streets and the workplaces are needed now more than ever.

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